I Saw it on the Grape Vine

Our coastal variety grape vine is now really going ahead in leaps and bounds, in fact it has gone feral. It is amazing really, because we do nothing for it, it just seems to grow well in our thick clay soil. It now stretches right along the verandah rails (half the length of the house) and at one end disappears up into the canopy of the coastal wattle tree and at the other end up into the marmalade grevillia. It is so laden with bunches of ripening grapes I am sure that there are already many little sets of eyes watching it with great interest.

Last year we had the scrub turkeys, Lewin’s honey eaters, possums, buff banded rails and noisy miners all competing to see how many grapes they could get through. The mother possum even brought her new baby around to teach it the ropes. Fortunately there are enough grapes for everyone so we don’t mind sharing with all the other creatures - most of the time. We just wrap old stockings around all the best bunches so they can ripen in peace. Only problem is, last year the scrub turkeys started to perfect their technique of getting the stockings undone. Hopefully this year we can continue to outsmart them!

Wildlife Gardens

Our vegetable garden only takes up around one quarter of our land, and to get some natural balance, the rest has been planted out as a wildlife garden. This type of garden takes a little thought, but is simple and fun to do. By using plants that tuft, clump, or climb; and incorporating ground covers; along with densely packed shrubs and trees we have pretty well eliminated any lawn area. These plants create spaces and opportunities for birds, lizards and insects to feed, shelter, breed and live. The ground is mulched with twigs and leaves and we have a birdbath near the shrubs and trees to provide birds with another reason to come into the garden.

The main thing is to have a variety of plants and a structure to the garden…you need to have more than trees, shrubs to make it interesting to attract the widest possible variety of creatures to your garden. Our wildlife garden has both natives and exotics (succulents, fruit trees/vines, vegetables and flowers) all of which make the local creatures want to make our place their place! Choose plants that are hardy to drought conditions by checking at your local nursery.

Here are a few possibilities to start with, native trees like coastal banksias, bottlebrushes and the ‘toothbrush flowered’ grevillias are popular with birds and insects providing food and nesting sites. Aussie shrubs like wattles and bush-peas attract butterflies, native bees and seed eating birds. Climbers like the snake vine or guinea flower, (Hibbertia spp) as they have a fragrant yellow flower and the pollen is food for native baby bees. Native sarsaparilla is another climber that provides nesting material and food for possums and birds. A popular tufting and clumping plant is the creek mat rush (Lomandra spp). They offer shelter and nesting sites as well as attracting butterflies, insects and birds and small mammals. Ground covers can be native grasses, creeping herbs, or low growing succulents.